A little about Aqaba, Jordan

Aqaba is Jordan's only seaport and is evenly split between a rapidly developing world class port and a resort town. It borders Eilat, Israel and is at the head of the Gulf of Aqaba, an offshoot of the Red Sea. The town sits in valley between two arms of a mountain range as it reaches the sea, making it quite beautiful. From the Aqaba area, on a clear day, you can see Israel, Egypt, and Saudi Arabia.

This area at the head of the Gulf has been settled since 4000 BC under the Edomites, Nabataeans (also built Petra), Greeks, Romans, the Islamic Caliphate (after Muhammad), the Crusader Kingdom of Jerusalem, Saladin, Mamluks, the Ottoman Empire, Lawrence of Arabia, and finally Jordan. Aqaba also sits astride one of the routes to the holy sites in Mecca.

Visible from everywhere in the area is the Aqaba flagpole, the second tallest free-standing flagpole in the world at nearly 450 feet tall. It flies the flag of Arab Revolt (Palestinian support), which looks like the Jordanian flag with the colors rearranged and minus the star. There is also amazing diving in the Gulf of Aqaba, but I didn't get to experience that. The water was nice though with a higher than normal salt content making me more buoyant than normal...pretty easy to swim. I can definitely vouch that there are some great hotels and despite the global economic downturn, Aqaba is undergoing significant development of some impressive new living and resort areas. With Petra and Wadi Rum nearby, it is a great place to visit.